BWI CORRIDOR, MD (February 2, 2004) – Bartech
Systems International, the world’s leading provider of automated minibars,
announced today that it has installed the world’s first wireless minibar
network at the world famous Willard InterContinental Hotel in Washington,
D.C. Bartech’s e-fridges wireless system avoids the cost and disruption
of hard wiring the hotel while providing a wireless infrastructure for
future service applications.

The Bartech’s e-fridge wireless network connects
all of the Willard’s 341 rooms on 12 floors. Each e-fridge minibar
is given an IP address, which allows it to communicate with Bartech’s central
unit through wireless access points. The result is continuous real-time
information exchange between the Bartech refreshment center and the Willard’s
guestroom accounting software or Property Management System (PMS).

E-fridge automated
minibar units are equipped with sensors on which product is placed. When
a guest removes an item, the system instantly sends a message to the hotel’s
Property Management System (PMS) to record the charge. If the item
is replaced within a pre-set time period -- typically 30 seconds -- it
is not recorded as consumed, however, hotel staff is alerted to check the
product for tampering.

"We selected Bartech because of its wireless solution,"
said Pascal Forotti, executive assistant manager of The Willard.
"As an immediate benefit, the

Wireless Bartech e-fridge comes
with standard or custom finishes

e-fridge will increase our refreshment revenues and
enhance guest satisfaction as it streamlines the billing process.
In the longer term, we now have an infrastructure that we can use to offer
complimentary wireless Internet in each of our 341 guest rooms, instead
of the wired high speed access that is currently available."
The Willard Hotel currently offers wireless capacities to its guests in
all public areas.

The Willard had been using traditional honor minibars
that required the guest or minibar attendants to record product usage.
The manual system resulted in lost revenues due to human error and missed
charges. By moving to an automated system, the Willard expects to
increase refreshment revenues by capturing all transactions and reducing
spoilage through Bartech’s expiration date control feature.

“The Willard is a hospitality leader that is able
to maintain its rich, classic style while introducing the latest technology
capabilities to serve its guests,” commented Daniel Cohen, president of
Bartech Systems International. “It is natural that the Willard
be the first hotel to implement this first-to-market technology that helps
preserve the ambiance of the property while providing an infrastructure
for additional wireless applications.”

Once a hotel has installed a wireless system,
it will be able to capitalize on this infrastructure and offer high-speed
wireless Internet access in each room as well as other wireless guest services
such as housekeeping and in-room energy controls. Installing a wireless
system provides a cost savings for hotels that already have a wireless
system in place by reducing installation and networking costs.

About the Willard Intercontinental Hotel

The historic Willard Intercontinental Hotel is
the "Grande Dame" of American hotels. It’s a Washington institution that
has hosted almost every U.S. president since Zachary Taylor in 1850. It
was here that Julia Ward Howe wrote "The Battle Hymn of the Republic",
where Abraham Lincoln lived for a month, where, in the grand lobby, President
Ulysses S. Grant coined the term "Lobbyist", and where Rev. Dr. Martin
Luther King finished his famous "I Have A Dream" speech. From its inception
to this day, the Willard has been a major force in the social and political
life of Washington, DC. For more information, visit www.washington.interconti.com
or contact Barbara Bahny at 202.637.7309 or barbara_bahny@interconti.com
.

About BartechBartech Systems International is headquartered
in Millersville, MD and has more than 100,000 installations in 34 countries.
With e-fridge units installed in more than 20,000 U.S. hotel rooms, Bartech
is the leading provider of automatic mini-bars for chain and independent
hotels in the United States. Its customers include the Bellagio Hotel
& Casino – Las Vegas, Embassy Suites Logan Airport – Boston, Mirage
Hotel & Casino – Las Vegas, Stein Eriksen – Park City, Hyatt Regency
– New York, Sheraton Universal – Los Angeles, Iroquois Hotel – New York.
For more information on Bartech Systems International, log onto www.my-bartech.com
or contact Katrina Pruitt-Andrews at 301.604.7377 or kpandrews@kpa-pr.com
.